


You and me, repeat

by orphan_account



Category: Free!
Genre: Alternate Universe, Fluff and Angst, Friend Fiction, M/M, Reincarnation, So Many ShoutOuts
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-04-16
Updated: 2018-04-16
Packaged: 2019-04-23 18:04:32
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,276
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14338071
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/orphan_account/pseuds/orphan_account
Summary: A life of reincarnation for star crossed lovers...or not really





	You and me, repeat

**Author's Note:**

> An old fic based on 25 lives poem by Tongari.

The first time Makoto remembered, he was for a lack of better word, a fiery brunette with a side helping of shark-like teeth. Rin didn’t love him and ended up dating someone else, a petite girl with fluffy curls, two years his junior in college. Also, while Rin was a star during his club years, he failed to qualify for the Olympics. The tears that he shed when he received the news was both heart wrenching and beautiful. Tiny droplets of water falling to the ground, it sparkled when the evening sunlight hit it at just the right angle.

+

The second time, Makoto was not Makoto and Rin was not Rin. They were both girls and also, a pair of lovers. Makoto (for the sake of simplification) worked at a small coffee shop near the station where Rin was a regular customer. A banal conversation about the weather turned into something more intimate, and that was how she managed to find herself a lover. Rin was still obsessed with swimming while Makoto fancied himself (well, now herself) as being practically the same. Aside from the obvious sex change, the only major difference would be that finally…

”Rin loves me.”

+

Makoto was now a cat, a chubby Japanese bobtail that Rin picked up a year before. He always know that Rin was actually a kind person, but wasn’t the situation a bit too cliché? Really, a fierce looking young man picking up a stray cat in the middle of a pouring rain did bring up some recollections of old shoujo mangas. But this time, the blushing heroine was nowhere to be found, so it seemed.

Moving on, he infinitely thanked God, Buddha, or other supreme beings that existed thereof, for their kindness. That karma didn’t decide to be funny and made his idle chats with his previous club mates a reality. Even though Makoto has got nothing against killer whales, being a cat was a whole lot more convenient. For starters, he was not an endangered species, cat food was actually quite good once you got used to it, napping on the shades was really comfortable, it felt good when someone (especially Rin) petted his head gently, and most importantly, Rin was there beside him. Makoto didn’t mind being a cat if that would mean getting Rin by his side for the entirety of his (regrettably) short life.

+

On the fourth episode, the camera zoomed out for a recap of the previous one. No, well, it would probably be more appropriate to liken it to that of a new season of the TV series that was his life. Makoto was the main character, and God was the audience along with the others. He could only hope that there would be enough popcorn and soft drinks in Heaven to keep them entertained. After all, he didn’t want the TV show to be put on end so soon because of the low ratings. Makoto was now a moderately successful painter, and yes, he was back to being a human male. Time skipped, and by the time Makoto has finally noticed, he was already 50 years old – with no Rin in his life. He tried, he honestly did, but the fruitlessness of his stubborn search has finally hit him square in the face. Apparently, the rule of being gentle to old people didn’t apply to fate. _What a pity_.

The worst case would be that Rin didn’t exist in this life time. But perhaps, he was just living in another country, or a whole different continent. Or perhaps, he was born in another time line, or in a different form that Makoto has yet failed to notice. Whatever the reasons, he was tired, so very tired of it all. If necessity was the mother of invention, would the emptiness in his chest be enough of a reason to create something in Rin’s image? Makoto’s last painting before he quit art (and life) permanently was a picture of a smiling young man.

+

By the cruel twist of fate, Makoto was now a member of the yakuza…just don’t ask how or why, he wasn’t really sure about it himself. It was winter, and Makoto was given the order by a senior member to do some drug deliveries. Unfortunately for the gang, or more precisely for him, the said senior was also a turncoat, and Makoto then suddenly found himself in the middle of fierce gunfight with the police. A piercing pain in his stomach, a violent impact when he hit the ground, and Makoto was done for. Life didn’t flash before his eyes like so many books and movies have led him to believe. Really, after walking around the earth for so many times, he should probably have known better. But still, he hoped to see a familiar face just for one last time.

A few seconds before he finally closed his eyes, in the midst of all the commotion, there, stood before him, Rin, wearing a police uniform and holding a gun. _This time is far from the worst_ , Makoto thought.

“I very much prefer the time when you kill me, than the one when you didn’t exist.”

+

The good news was that they finally managed to grow up together. The bad news on the other hand, was that during this life time, Makoto and Rin were brothers. By blood. By the same mother and father. In short, there was no way getting around the fact. No, 'it's okay because we're cousins/not related by blood/adopted' or other such excuses that existed within the realm of fiction handy to get him out of this mess. For 27 years, Makoto has patiently waited for their parents to break an 'important news' and give a twist to their story. But alas, what would be called a wishful thinking on his part would remain…just that. A wishful thinking. Makoto was also not bold enough to loudly proclaim, “As long as there is love, it doesn't matter if he's my brother, right!?” and promptly stole Rin from the bright future that was ahead of him. So he just put his feelings on the deepest part of his heart, covered by layer upon layers of lies and brotherly affection – like a bastardized version of a Russian Matryosha doll.

To make matters worse, the train he was riding on was currently burning. Apparently, some suicidal lunatics have set the stopping train on fire and he might die for good (again) this time. Amidst the panicked voices, rising temperatures, and thick smokes, Makoto pulled out his cell phone and sent Rin a short text message.

[ I love you, see you again next time]

You will always be in my heart, always.

+

By this time, Makoto has given up on trying to assign meanings to Rin’s hair colours. Red (and by some extension, purple) was for when he didn’t love him, blond for when he did, black when he presumed (or hoped) that he did, and so on soforth. Makoto was standing near the train tracks, waiting for his turn to cross, and humming a certain melody from a time long past. He was still 18, there would be enough time to search for Rin. Because this time, Rin surely existed, and perhaps, he was also now humming the same melody as him. They did go to the same grade school once, after all. _If Rin and me are humming the same melody, at the same time, it will be just like we are together, right?_ It was foolish of him. So foolish and sentimental.

Just when the train was about to pass, he felt his shoe lace loosen, and bent down to fix it. Makoto was too busy tying up his shoe to notice the instant when the train shot pass. With the familiar face of a certain someone standing in front of the glass window.

+

This life time was rather pleasant, if Makoto could have said so for himself. Makoto has finally reunited with Haruka, Rei, Gou, Ran, Ren, and Nagisa. His friends and siblings from his time back in Iwatobi. Rin was also there, and everything was perfect. Except for the tiny detail which manifested itself in the form of a golden band on her finger, the waves of congratulatory remarks from her friends, and the girlish wedding invitations that she passed over the table. Everything was perfect, really. Because, people said that every cloud has a silver lining, so the same must also be true to the mushroom shaped one that was slowly spreading over him.

At least Rin existed, and smiling…. _even when she is not with me._

+

It was a rather peculiar situation, honestly. Makoto was now a war veteran looking for a flat mate. A normal one. Instead, he then found himself saddled with one that gleefully put a human skull in the refrigerator, poisoned his tea just to see if it worked, shot the wall in a fit of boredom, and dazzled him out like no other. Every day would be another whirlwind of thrill and excitement. He would trot around the city and solve mysteries, while Makoto would stick by and blog about it. He regretted the time when they fought and the…unfortunate incident that followed. For the first time in his multiple lives, he decided to seek for another replacement. She was pretty, and he was lonely. The fit was not perfect, but at least it was snug enough to keep him going.

Finally, it was a full two years since that time. He has grown a mustache, yes, he really did want to try it at least once, and his relationship with her was as close as ever. At least, until the text from an unknown number appeared on his cell.

[Meet me at…]

Could it be…no, he dared not to hope. Most probably, it was just a random old buddy in the army that had decided to meet up with him on a whim. Or his dreaded brother. Or it could be any other person really…except him.

Then, there he was, calmly walking down the aisle, looking no different than he was years ago. Like something straight from a figment of his imagination, or his worst night mare. “You…” he dared not to utter his name for the fear of shattering this fleeting encounter.

"The thrill of the chase—the blood pumping through your veins…just the two of us against the rest of the world!" his (supposedly dead) flat mate loudly exclaimed.

+

He was lucky this time. No, really. It was not the kind of a deal which was too good to be true, and proved to be hogwash later on. It was really, an honest to goodness, good deal. He managed to meet Rin early on, and no, they were not blood related. It was a happy time, and while Makoto knew that he had so many bad ideas in the past, he just wished that he didn’t invite Rin out to the park on a certain hot summer day in August.

+

Now, he was back in high school. The school didn’t have a swimming team, so he opted to join the basketball club instead. It was really a pity that he had lost a good 7 centimeters off of his original height, but his vision did infinitely get better. So all in all, it was not a bad deal. The Rin in this life time also joined the basket ball club. They played basket ball together, walked home together, laughed together, and generally spent more time together…enjoying each other’s company. _Every day passed by so gently like it is obvious, because we can stay in a relationship that didn’t change_.

Makoto hoped that this happiness would last for a long long time.

+

She put down her pencil and flipped around to read the previous pages. The writings were messy and all over the place, for she paid little attention to its neatness in the first place. It was just like a doodle, really. Except that she was not interested and confident enough in her drawing skills to doodle in the first place. All in all, the contents were not half bad, but it would stay just that. A fiction. A messy scribble on the note book of a certain bored student. Such romantic attachment didn’t exist and her brother would surely qualify for the Olympics.

Writing two characters in multiple verses was fun. The awkward part would be when she shamelessly modeled them after her close friends and family. Her brother was easy enough, but the second one was rather tricky. Someone close enough to her brother, and whose personality she knew quite well to write about. Haruka senpai’s personality was hard to grasp for a simple drabble, she knew no one well enough in Samezuka, and as for Nagisa senpai…she didn’t think that he was sufficiently close enough to him to warrant a romantic story. Rei was.... _too Rei._ Thus, her choice in Makoto senpai. Her childhood memories of them together also helped in the making of that decision.

It would be rather bad for the scribble to be found out by other people, so she ripped the pages off from her note book, and stuffed it to the nearest trash bin. A pretty good distraction from the boring class presentation, but it was just as they said, a glaring evidence on her rather unsavory hobby. The deed was done, and it was time to move on and face reality. It was time for the club activities, and the manager couldn’t be late for practice.


End file.
